Leaders of Sioux Falls’ events center want to help ticket buyers understand why shows sell out so quickly, and some concert-goers want officials to do more. The general manager of the Denny Sanford Premier Center says special sponsors receive perks, but they’re the same that anyone who signs up for the newsletter also gets, and everyone is capped at the number of tickets they can buy. The reassurance that leaders are trying to keep fraud out of the system still leaves thousands without tickets.
Lisa and Allen Compton did the math. The husband and wife say they attend an average of 27 acts each year, but the Sioux Falls couple sees few of them in their hometown.
"We never even bothered to buy tickets here in Sioux Falls for Kenny Chesney because we’re going to see him in the cities. Same with Jason Aldean; he’s going to be paired up with Chesney, so I guess I should say, because of the frustration, we’re not even looking as hard as we used to," Allen Compton says. "We’re just saying, ‘You know what? There’s 10,000 tickets available. Five minutes into the sale, they’re gone.’ So I’m not as excited to go online and look for tickets because I know I’m not even getting a chance at these big artists."
Compton says he voted to build the new events center, and he’s got tickets to some performances.
Terry Torkildson is the general manager of the Denny Sanford Premier Center.
"The fact that we have Luke Bryan and Kenny Chesney? It’s unbelievable," Torkildson says. "We are the smallest market that has those shows. The fact that we even got it? Unbelievable."
Torkildson says they try to lobby promoters for more shows, but the companies risk losing money if they can’t sell all the tickets.
Compton says he understands, but having big names perform just once makes it difficult to get a seat. Plus he’d rather spend his money locally instead of traveling for entertainment.
"We just need two tickets. I don’t need four. I don’t need eight. Just give me two – together," Compton says.
Compton says he'll take them - even if they’re in the nosebleeds.